Map Series #4 St. Mihiel Offensive

I can't fathom all the criteria that Google uses to rank websites, so I can't explain why this is so, but if you type in "St. Mihiel Offensive" + map in the Google search box, at the top of the results list you will get (at least I got) two links to this map from Library of Congress pages.  You can click on the image to expand it, but I think—that unless you have read a helluva lot about the operation—you will be utterly mystified as to what happened there in September 1918 when Pershing's First Army launched its initial offensive.

On the other hand, if you connect to the third entry on the list, which is the Wikipedia article on the St. Mihiel Offensive,  you will find it uses the map below.  If you were to spend an afternoon browsing the Web, you would discover  that this simpler map is used on numerous  sites (sometimes in modified form) by historians, bloggers, genealogists, and others with various levels  of insight on the battle.  On the other hand, you will find the usage by others of the Library of Congress recommended map is approximately zero.

Why do World War I researchers find the lower map handier? Primarily, this is because the cartographer's intention was that it would help readers understand the battle.  I can say this categorically, because I was the designer of this map.  In 1998—that other century, long past—I was putting together my first WWI website, The Doughboy Center.  The St. Mihiel map is one of a series I did to accompany the articles on the major AEF battles. There was a photo/editing program bundled into an early version of Windows that I used to draw this.  If you think it looks a little shaky, that's because the mouse was shaking as I dragged it along the mouse pad. 

In looking at it today, frankly, I'm a little embarrassed about how amateurish it seems and with the inaccuracies with the exact placement of the units and towns. But it seems to have taken a life of its own and it's out of my hands now. The People have spoken. Nonetheless, the map still gives a generally accurate depiction of the opening and culmination, and what happened in between. It clearly conveys this information: On  12 September 1918, three American corps and one French attacked an enemy salient located east of the Meuse River and and southwest of the Woevre Plain, reducing it in five days. Details include a scale, directions of the advances, and  locations of key features, towns, and  the final front line.  Pershing had to stop the troops there to re-focus his First Army on the coming Meuse-Argonne Offensive.

Even though some of folks who have borrowed my map have forgotten to mention where they found it, I'm very gratified that so many have found it useful over the years. By the way,  I'm spending some time updating The Doughboy Center so you're invited to visit it.  You'll see some of the other maps by my alter-ego, that internationally recognized  cartographer.  LINK

Map Series #24—The Best Map I've Ever Found for the Anzac/Suvla Sector at Gallipoli

You might still need to enlarge this map or use a magnifying glass to read all the details contained, but I sure wish I had it available when I visited Gallipoli, especially for the Suvla Bay area. It was produced by the New Zealand Department of Lands and Survey in 1915, and it is especially good at showing the terrain. 

Click on the image to  enlarge it.

By the way: To track down all the maps we have presented here over the years, in the search box in the upper left corner enter:

"Map Series #"

Map Series #28 Relative Sizes of the European Powers Superimposed on the United States

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Library of Congress Collection

For access to the full map series click HERE.

Map Series #7: Closing the Gap at the St. Mihiel Salient

Map A

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Source: New England in France, 1917–1919; A History of the Twenty-Sixth Division

The northern half of the pincer movement to collapse the St. Mihiel Salient was the responsibility of  General Pershing's V Corps, commanded by Major General George Cameron.  His main striking force for the effort was to be Major General Clarence Edwards 26th New England Division.  Map A shows the general plan and advance for the division.

The division's attack was launched at 0800 on 12 September just south of the village of Mouilly with the 51st Brigade to the right of Grand Tranchee de Calonne road and the 52nd Brigade to the left.

By 2100 hrs the division had reached its main initial objective and the two smaller French divisions on its flanks, which had started slowly earlier in the battle, had come up in support.

German resistance, especially artillery, was weakening. Pershing was concerned, however, that the remaining between the V Corps and his IV Corps attacking from the south that would allow most of the German forces in the sector to escape. He ordered the 26th division to renew the assault, aiming for Hattonchatel and Vignuelles 5 miles farther down the Trenchee de Calonne. The attack was renewed by the 102nd Infantry and 101st Machine Gun Battalion. Meanwhile, the 52nd Brigade pivoted and assaulted the remaining high ground to the east overlooking the Woevre Plain.

By 0220, 26th Division units were entering Vignuelles.

Map B

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Source: St. Mihiel, 12–16 September 1918, US Army Campaigns of World War I Series

Shown here  on the left is the charge down Trenchee de Calonne and the broadening of the 26th Division frontage over the lower section of the Meuse Heights. On the right side of the map is shown the advance of IV Corps with the 1st Division to the left of the 42nd Division. The 1st Division began its advance toward Vigneulles and Hattonchâtel shortly after midnight, 

At 0930 on 13 September, the 1st Division and IV Corps headquarters received the message “Objective reached, held by 26th Division.” Both divisions established defenses and made contact with units of the French 39th Division advancing from the south. Mopping up continued for the rest of the day, but the First Army had closed the St. Mihiel salient.

For the story of the 26th Division scouts who proceeded the advance down Trenchee de Calonne go HERE.

Map Series #2: A Handy U.S.-Oriented 1918 Map

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This map is from a U.S. Marine Corps publication "Reducing the St. Mihiel Salient" that can be downloaded HERE.

It was created by Marine cartographer Lt. Col. R. L. Cody, USMC (Ret)

Its focus is on the 4th Marine Brigade of the AEF's 2nd "Indianhead" Division, which was one of the most active of General Pershing's formations. They fought in all the major operations, except in Flanders and the Somme, so the map gives a lot of details in that regard. However, it is especially "handy" for a lot of the additional information Col Cody included in the map. Not including the information specific to the 4th Brigade or 2nd Division, it shows:

• The major ports of the AEF
• General and Services of Supply Headquarters
• Coblenz, Center  and Headquarters of U.S Occupation Forces
• Main rail supply lines
• Allied Advance and Armistice Lines for 1918

Map Series #20: The Fight for Belleau Wood

During the recent Centennial and afterwards, the American Battle Monuments Commission has been turning out a lot of fresh and helpful material on the American effort in the war.  One item of which that has just come to my attention is a 2019 brochure on the fighting at Belleau Wood in 1918. It includes a great campaign map (more on that to follow), plus a concise history of the fighting,  another map for a walking tour of the battlefield with information on each stop, notable participants in the battle, and additional information on other key sites in the Château-Thierry vicinity. The full pamphlet can be downloaded HERE.

Nonetheless, the "star" of the publication is this map delineating all the major actions of the three-week battle. Besides the main assault on Belleau Wood, it shows the 6 June flank attacks on Hill 142 and Bouresches, the supporting operations of the 2nd Division's 3rd Brigade, and the positions and main attacks of the German forces. I've read several works covering Belleau Wood and visited the battlefield over a dozen times, but this map clarified the conduct of the fighting there in a new way for me. It's a cartographic tour de force.

Click on Image to Enlarge

(Size: Display = 580px; Download = 1200px)

Map Series #6: The Isonzo Sector of the Italian Front

I found this map in a compilation of New York Times Mid-Week Pictorials that were published during the war.  After three visits to this area, I can say that—though it has many micro-errors and misplacements—it does that best job I've ever seen of capturing the size, terrain, and relative positioning among the key locations I've ever seen for what was the most important sector of the war on the Italian Front.  Begin your review by tracing the Isonzo (now Soca) River from the Gulf of Trieste past the towns of Gorizia, Tomin[o] Caporetto, and Plezzo to the Julian Alps. These towns all played important roles during the war.  Then examine the transitional area between the sea and the mountains which features two rugged plateau with their own mountain peaks, the Bainsezza and the Carso.  The latter was the great killing ground of the Italian Army during the war. The troops deployed here were trying to get to Trieste and in 11 battles only got about a quarter of the way.

I've highlighted some of the names of important locales and circled two sub-sections in yellow that needed to be delineated.  The lower section is where the principal fighting (not all) occurred for the 11 battles of the Isonzo, which were all Italian offensives aimed strategically at capturing Trieste.  The upper area is where the Austro-German Caporetto breakthrough (also known as the 12th Battle of the Isonzo) took place in October 1917.  I don't believe Caporetto had been fought yet when this map was created. As you will see below,  you will need to open the map to be able to read it. The original is 1600 x 2400 pixels.

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Map Series #25—America As New Prussia

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Display=580px, Large=1060px

Life, 10 February 1916, Front Cover

[Note: Please enlarge this map.  Some of the cleverest humor is in the selection of new names for U.S. cities.]

Germany might pose a future threat, and that a failure to prepare for war might lead to dire consequences. As the map illustrates, Germany and its allies were not the only potential adversaries: there were also concerns regarding Japan’s strength amid increasing tensions in the Pacific. None of these scenarios came to fruition. The United States ended up fighting on the same side as Japan, and while Germany did become an enemy, the chance of it successfully subjugating the United States had always been slim. But the fantastical nature of the map was surely part of its appeal, for this cover image was undoubtedly intended to be humorous, as a glance at some of the place names—including "Kuturplatz," "Hyphenburg," and "Goosestep"—reveals.

What was Life satirizing here, and what were its readers supposed to be laughing at? By using humor, the magazine may have been mocking overblown fears of invasion, and perhaps even undermining the arguments of those who advocated preparedness.

However, when this image is read alongside the magazine’s editorials—which consistently pressed for preparedness—it becomes clear that Life was also making a serious point. Life’s editors, alongside a growing number of other Americans, believed that the United States needed to be able to defend itself against foreign threats. An invasion may have been unlikely, but it was not entirely implausible. If Germany defeated Britain on the Western Front, there was a risk that Canada, a British Dominion, might fall into German hands, which in turn would severely threaten American security.

Life’s arresting cover image reflects how widely the Great War pervaded American culture, even before U.S. intervention in April 1917. From the moment it broke out in Europe in the summer of 1914, the war provoked discussion and debate in American publications, and the nation’s citizens became acutely aware of developments on the other side of the Atlantic.

 Despite this, there have been relatively few works which deal in depth with how the war affected the United States between 1914 and 1917. As the historian Jennifer Keene has recently argued, "too often, discussions of America’s road to war become focused nearly exclusively on Woodrow Wilson’s decision making."

The social and cultural dimensions of the neutrality period—and especially the responses of the American public during these years—remain under-explored, and there is no historical consensus regarding the extent to which the American people supported intervention before April 1917.

Source: "Humour, neutrality, and preparedness: American satirical magazines and the First World War, 1914–1917," by Vincent Trott,  War in History, Vol. 29, 2016

Map Series #19: Le Hamel 4 July 1918

When I was researching my recent article on General Fuller and tank warfare, I discovered he had included this very helpful map on the battle of Le Hamel, which is considered a tactical masterpiece by General Monash and an example of where the potential of the tank was on full display. This map is exceptional because it shows where the tanks were deployed at the opening of the attack.

I have supplemented the map with three photographs which will help the reader appreciate the terrain, which, to me, looks just perfect for tank warfare. Please note the directions. North is to the left; the attack was mounted from west (bottom) to east (top).  C is the 

A.  Australian Front Line

A-B.  No Man's Land

B.  German Front Line

C.  Final Objective (Looking West from the Site of the present day Australian Memorial.)

Click on Images to Enlarge

To learn more about this interesting battle, read our article here:

https://roadstothegreatwar-ww1.blogspot.com/2020/07/battle-on-4th-of-july-le-hamel-1918.html

Map Series #5: Verdun 1917

Despite several well-written books on the Battle of Verdun, most focus on the 1916 operations and gloss over the follow-up efforts by the French in 1917.  These efforts are especially of interest to those interested in the American fighting in the Meuse-Argonne Offensive in the fall of 1918 because the French set the opening line for the Yanks in the following year.  This map is one of 150 from a postwar atlas prepared by the U.S. Army Command and Staff College titled The Military History of the World War.  The quality of the maps in the collection is quite varied, but this one, #70 from the set, is pretty clear about what transpired in the most noted of Petain's efforts to get the French Army rolling again after the calamitous spring 1917 events by initiating limited offensives. In any case, this is the best map I've ever seen covering the August 1917 fighting around Verdun.

Click on Image to Enlarge

Some Observations:

The legend is very helpful since it includes the lines for both 1916 and 1917. The use of American terminology is unique to this map and might cause some confusion while using it in conjunction with most books and articles on Verdun

Most beneficial for the future operation of Pershing's forces was the clearing of the line of hills on the west side of the Meuse, including 304, Mort Homme (Dead Man's), and Goose. On the right side of the attack of 26 September, the Doughboys would not have to assault  fortified high positions.

In contrast, the French were not able to get at the wooded areas on the heights of the east bank, such as Bois des Caures, which had been captured by the Germans in the opening of the February 1916 assault.  The U.S. 26th Division would still be fighting in this area at the time of the Armistice.

Map Series #1: The Battle Fronts of Europe

This begins a new occasional series on Roads to the Great War

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New York Public Library Collection

This map from the Library of Congress collection was created by British cartographer Edward Stanford during the war.  It gives Americans the scale of the war being fought at that time.  Also, it must have been eye-opening to Europeans.  It has been my experience traveling to Europe,  the U.K., and Ireland that many folks there, especially those who have never traveled to America don't quite grasp how large it is. I would guess that effect might have been greater in 1917 than now.

What Happened at the First Battle of Artois?

Depiction of the Fighting Durint the First Artois

There is a piece of the Western Front, running north of Paris to the Channel, principally entailing the department known at the Pas de Calais. The heart of the Pas de Calais is a district known as Artois, the largest city of which is Arras, about 110 miles north of Paris. Further north from Arras is a series of ridges known as the de Lorette Heights. A chap named Napoleon Bonaparte, who knew something about battlefields, once said, "Whoever dominates the de Lorette Heights commands France." This was validated, by the way, in 1940, when the last big effort of the Allies to stop the German Panzers was defeated in the shadow of these ridges and the Germans quickly got to the Channel and turned on Paris. France soon fell. In World War I, though, Marshal Joffre fully understood the importance of the heights and launched the first post-trenches attack of the war here in late 1914.

The Action Described Here Was at the Very Top of the Map

On the night of 4 October 1914 Bavarian Infantry had taken possession of the flat-topped Hill 165—already known locally as Notre Dame de Lorette— which had been left almost defenseless by the French during the "Race to the Sea." A chapel, built when the hill was a site of sacred oratorios, was turned into a bastion. The surrounding villages were also well fortified by the Germans and connected via underground passageways. 

There followed three subsequent distinct battles around Notre Dame de Lorette identified as the Battles of Artois, though accounts of their precise dates and results differ between the French and British versions. The first these began on 26 October 1914 with a series of German attacks and French counterattacks which kept Notre Dame in German hands. The collection of actions which ensued are generally categorized historically as the First Battle of Artois. Some sources discount the October fighting and place its start as 17 December 1914. There also seems to be some disagreement about the conclusion of the fighting since fighting on the plateau continued intermittently right up until the next major French offensive in May 1915, the Second Battle of Artois.

The Prewar Chapel on de Lorette Height

Early in December 1914. the tactical situation did change with the arrival of several units of French heavy artillery, whose fire compelled the Germans on Lorette ridge to take cover in their deep dug-outs. The French Higher Command ordered the XXI. Corps, which had held the Lorette sector since its stabilization, to attack in the hope of a breakthrough. The Corps commander, Gen. Maistre, was doubtful of the success of the operation proposed, judging the means insufficient and the obstacles to be encountered too strong. Nevertheless, the attack took place on 17 December on a front of a mile and a quarter, with diversions against other German strong points in Artois. Near Lorette, the artillery preparation had not been sufficient to prevent the assaulting troops coming under heavy fire, especially from machine guns, as they left the trenches. The German wire was strong and had been very little cut. Nevertheless, the attacking Poilus struggled on through deep mud, and succeeded in taking some trenches. For four days the operation was persisted in. The artillery support was weak, partly because of the winding, irregular front line, partly through insufficient liaison with the infantry. Against such handicaps the infantry strove bravely but in vain. At last, after murderous losses which justified only too well Gen. Maistre's forebodings, the main attack was broken off.

German Trench on de Lorette Height

In the afternoon of December 27 ten battalions of Chasseurs Alpins, commanded by Gen. Barbot, attacked the hamlet of La Targette to the south [see map], after two hours of artillery preparation. "No-man's-land" here was a quarter of a mile wide, quite flat, and without cover save for a single sunken road. Hence losses were heavy and onlv half a mile of first-line trenches were taken. A nearly unbroken series of minor operations took place throughout the winter and early spring.

Believed to Be an Authentic Photo of a French Attack on de Lorette Height

As the winter went on, the sticky mud became even worse, and the heavy German trench-mortars added still more to the danger and discomfort of the trenches. On 3 March at dawn, after a short but violent preparation by heavy artillery and heavy trench mortars, an entire German division made a sudden attack along the crest of the ridge, and drove the French into Buvigny wood. Two days of counterattacks recovered most of the ground lost, and throughout March and April a series of local attacks and counter-attacks slightly improved the French position at a cost in casualties disproportionately severe in comparison with the ground gained. The dead were not all Frenchmen. Already the German troops were beginning to call the ridge "Tolenhugd," the Hill of Death.  A second general attack (Second Battle of Artois)  was mounted in May 1915 that secured Notre Dame de Loreette and even included a penetration to distant, Vimy Ridge that was, however, quickly beaten back by the Germans.

Preserved Trenches from the 12–15 Fighting

Except for the 1917 Canadian victory at Vimy Ridge, the Artois and de Lorette Heights are one of the neglected battlefields of the Great War in most English-language sources. For some reason, these intense battles lack the "sex appeal" of Flanders or Verdun for historians. However, consider this—on the crest of Notre Dame de Lorette rest the remains of 40,000 Frenchmen in France's largest war cemetery and ossuary, and a magnificent basilica on the site of the original chapel. Alongside them is a massive new elliptical monument, something in the character of America's Vietnam Memorial, with the names of all the combatants of all nations who fell in Artois and French Flanders listed. There are 580,000 names on that monument, including some Americans. An impressive section of the 1914–15 trenches have been preserved on the site as well.

Notre Dame de Lorette Today
During 1914–15, the French Would Have Been Attacking from the Upper Left (West)
[Click on Image to Enlarge]

Sources:  Encyclopedia Britannica, 1922; Webmatters

Map Series #10: The 5th Division, AEF, Crosses the Meuse

Very Early and Just-Completed Monument to the 5th Division's Meuse River Crossing
Note Meuse Heights in Distance

As part of the final phase of the Meuse-Argonne Offensive—launched 1 November 1918—the III Corps of the AEF's First Army, composed of the 90th and 5th Divisions, was given the objective of crossing the Meuse River and seizing the Meuse River Heights to the east. One of the most advantageous points for exploiting the initial crossing and moving promptly upland was at the river town of Dun-sur-Meuse.  The town was in the zone of the 5th Division.

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The above map is from the Official History of the 5th Division.  It shows the advance of the division from its starting point on 1 November and pivoting  up to the river, where it arrived on 4 November. Note that the map does not clearly depict that there is both the river and a parallel canal running below the town.

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This is a photograph taken by a U.S. Air Service reconnaissance aircraft on 2 November 1918 of the area around Dun-sur-Meuse. The 5th Division successfully forced a crossing of the river and canal at this location over the 4th and 5th of November. Sometime after the action, Cartographer Sergeant Major Willard B. Prince of the 5th Division Intelligence Section made the annotations on the photograph.  The Library of Congress holds Prince's World War I collection.

Sources:  Maps of the First World War: An Illustrated Essay and List of Select Maps in the Library of Congress; Official History of the Fifth Division, AEF; and the Michelin Meuse-Argonne Battlefield Guide.

Map Series #15: The Ethnic Divisions of the Austro-Hungarian Empire

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Public domain map by Andrein, Presented at Vox

Map Series #29—Von Spee's Blunder at the Falkland Islands

SMS Leipzig Under Fire at the Falklands

On the morning of 8 December 1914, in preparation for a dash home to Germany, Vice Admiral Maximilian Graf von Spee was advancing his East Asian Squadron to Port Stanley in the Falkland Islands, with the objective of silencing the British communications center there.

His advance ships Gneisenau and Nürnberg, however, reported a substantial British squadron re-coaling in the harbor, although their reports were unclear or misinterpreted about the presence of capital ships.

Admiral von Spee

Von Spee therefore neither appreciated his opportunity to bottle up and possibly disable major ships of his enemy nor factored into his calculations that the two modern battle cruisers on the scene could run down any of his ships in open waters and fire upon him from beyond his own ships' range. He chose to decline battle under the most promising and advantageous conditions and ordered his vessels to break off contact and sail southeast at full speed. 

In a pursuit at sea, the British battle cruisers had multiple advantages over von Spee's ships. Their main batteries had greater range and, though coal-burning, they carried a limited amount of oil allowing maintenance of their great speed for a longer time. Coal-fired ships could only maintain their designated top operational speeds for about eight hours due to the need to clean fires, which required a temporary reduction in speed. 

For von Spee it was both a missed opportunity and doomed escape. He lost his squadron, both his sons, and his own life.  Here is a map showing the battle as it unfolded.  Click on the image to enlarge it.

Sources:  Over the Top, March 2011; World War I Document Archive (Map)

Map Series #3: The 1915 Battles in the Champagne

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In English-language sources, the 1915 campaign on the Western Front is vastly under-reported.  For military historians the fighting there apparently seems especially pointless and the interest in and enthusiasm for the ill-fated Gallipoli operation has remained irresistible and unabated for a century. 

The French Army carried the much-bigger load throughout the year because the British New Army was still being recruited and trained. Consequently the French incurred enormous casualties in Artois, north of Paris, and in the Champagne. However, in terms of the learning curve for the French Army, these battles must be studied for a full understanding of why breakthroughs at any location at this time of the war were almost impossible. The Champagne, especially, showed the need for an even greater investment in artillery and the development of a doctrine for advancing against multiple trench lines with elaborate barbed wire barricades.

This map from a French postwar magazine is well detailed, showing well-known sites like Navarin Farm and Main de Massignes, and nicely delineates between the First Champagne, which started in December 1914, and the Second, launched in September 1915. The width of the map covers about 12 miles.  The farthest cumulative advance in the two battles was 3 miles. France paid for the lessons learned in them with nearly a quarter million casualties.

For some additional details on the battles visit our earlier articles:

First Champagne

Second Champagne

Map Series #12: Where the War Stood in August 1916

This map illustrates where the battle lines stood on 1 August 1916, exactly two years into the war and after the launching of the Verdun, Somme, and Brusilov offenses but before their conclusions.  Only the European theaters are shown.

Russia fared poorly, losing control of territory in what is now Poland, Ukraine, and the Baltics, while Serbia had been overrun. Fighting on the Western Front and in Italy had accomplished essentially nothing beyond what the Germans had managed to achieve before the Battle of the Marne.  The tiny blue line near Salonika in Greece represents a small Allied force that had seized the city to try to maintain a token force in the Balkans. Their presence embroiled Greek politics in crisis but had little military significance until the Central Powers were on their last legs.

The map was presented in the February 2016 issue of Carrying the Torch from the Friends of the Canadian War Museum.  The original source was not cited.

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Map Series #9 The First Division at Cantigny

This map is section from the "Battle of Cantigny Map"  published in 1944 by the American Battle Monuments Commission.  It not only clearly shows the advance against the village of Cantigny in late May 1918 but also shows the sector occupation of the 1st Division of the AEF until 7 July, when it was redeployed for the 18 July assault south of Soissons.

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Map Series #8: The Great War in East Africa

According to Wikipedia, this beautiful, annotated map was created in 2008 by University of Minnesota cartography student Mehmet Berker. It is highly informative and most professional. Mehmet won first place in NACIS Student Map Poster Competition that year for this work. He currently is cartography, GIS, and graphic design consultant in Los Angeles. Fully expanded it is 24 x 30 inches and is 1.2 megs.

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Map Series #26 Italian Progress on the Isonzo/Carso Sector

The battles of Isonzo represented Italy’s main offensive efforts against the Austro-Hungarian Empire during World War I. The 11 battles took place between 1915 and 1917 along the Isonzo River in northeastern Italy. The results were usually high losses on both sides without relevant strategic results. The strongest emphasis in the 11 battles was on advancing across the Carso Plateau, the gateway to Trieste. This map shows the pattern of advance for the Italian Army over two and a half years of campaigning. See our major article on the fighting on the Carso HERE.

Click on Map to Enlarge